# US 10,117,701 B2 · Tissue ablation with irreversible electroporation

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- Number: US 10,117,701 B2
- Document ID: US10117701B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 14/639,632
- Filed: 2015-03-05
- Published: 2015-06-25
- Granted: 2018-11-06
- Earliest claimed: 2003-12-24
- Assignees: The Regents of the University of California
- Applicants: The Regents of the University of California
- Inventors: Rafael Davalos; Boris Rubinsky
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10117701B2

## CPC

- A61B 18/12: by passing a current through the tissue to be heated, e.g. high-frequency current
- A61B 18/1233: {with circuits for assuring patient safety}
- A61N 1/0412: {Specially adapted for transcutaneous electroporation, e.g. including drug reservoirs}
- A61B 18/1477: {Needle-like probes}
- A61B 2018/00577: {Ablation}
- A61B 2018/00613: {Irreversible electroporation}
- A61B 2018/00714: {Temperature}
- A61B 2018/00761: {Duration}
- A61B 2018/00827: {Current}
- A61B 2018/1425: {Needle}
- A61N 1/0472: {Structure-related aspects}
- A61N 1/05: for implantation or insertion into the body, e.g. heart electrode (A61N1/06 takes precedence)
- A61N 1/327: {for enhancing the absorption properties of tissue, e.g. by electroporation}
- A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D)
- A61N: ELECTROTHERAPY; MAGNETOTHERAPY; RADIATION THERAPY; ULTRASOUND THERAPY (measurement of bioelectric currents A61B; surgical instruments, devices or methods for transferring non-mechanical forms of energy to or from the body A61B18/00; anaesthetic apparatus in general A61M; incandescent lamps H01K; infrared radiators for heating H05B)

## Abstract

A new method for the ablation of undesirable tissue such as cells of a cancerous or non-cancerous tumor is disclosed. It involves the placement of electrodes into or near the vicinity of the undesirable tissue through the application of electrical pulses causing irreversible electroporation of the cells throughout the entire area of the undesirable tissue. The electric pulses irreversibly permeate the cell membranes, thereby invoking cell death. The irreversibly permeabilized cells are left in situ and are removed by the body immune system. The amount of tissue ablation achievable through the use of irreversible electroporation without inducing thermal damage is considerable.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A device for ablating tissue, comprising:
first and second electrodes configured to-position a tissue zone to be treated there between;
a voltage generator in electrical connection with the first and second electrodes, and configured for applying a voltage between the first and second electrodes in a manner which provides a predetermined electric field around the tissue zone for a time sufficient to perform irreversible electroporation to kill substantially all of the cells in the identified tissue zone; and
a voltage regulator in electrical connection with the voltage generator and configured for adjusting the voltage and pulse duration of the voltage generator to obtain irreversible electroporation of cells in the tissue zone while minimizing damage to cells not in the tissue zone, the voltage regulator is configured to use a Laplace equation to calculate the electrical potential distribution in tissue during typical electroporation pulses and is further configured to use a modified Pennes equation to calculate the resulting temperature distribution.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The device of claim 1, wherein the voltage regulator provides pulses of 100 microseconds±about 10 microseconds at a voltage gradient in a range of from about 50 volt/cm to about 8000 volt/cm.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the voltage regulator provides pulses at a voltage gradient of at least 600 v/cm.